Handcrafted baskets from Passamaquoddy artisans are some of the products available at Abenaki Trading Co. on Route 1 in Edgecomb. (Abigail Adams photo)
The long-vacant red building adjacent to Peapod Jewelry on Route 1 in Edgecomb is now home to Native American crafts, artwork, music, and more from tribes across the country. Abenaki Trading Co. opened the doors to its new location in Edgecomb about a month ago and the response from customers has been “thank you,” owner Jocelyn Howe said.
Much of the store’s inventory is a result of the friendship and trust Howe has developed throughout the decades with artisans from tribes ranging from the Penobscot, Abenaki, and Passamaquoddy in Maine to the Zuni, Pueblo, Hopi, and Navajo in the Southwest.
Jocelyn Howe works at Abenaki Trading Co. in its new location in Edgecomb on Tuesday, Aug. 9. The store is raising awareness of Native American cultures and traditions through the sale of authentic products handcrafted by native artisans. (Abigail Adams photo)
Through Abenaki Trading Co., Howe hopes to build awareness of the culture and tradition of the first Americans.
“This is such a different business,” Howe said. “There’s a lot of trust involved.”
The crafts and artwork available at Abenaki Trading Co., which include jewelry, pottery, baskets, blankets, arrows, dream catchers, and more, were primarily handcrafted by artisans and sometimes tribal elders. The making of the products available at Abenaki Trading Co. is a lifestyle for the artisans, Howe said.
“It’s very symbolic,” Howe said of the artisans’ work. “A lot of it represents the creation story of the tribe, their teachings, their way of life. It’s an honor to have these here,” she said. “This is helping to support (the artisans’) families.”
Howe is not Native American, but her interest in native cultures was sparked at an early age when her family gave her a coloring book of Penobscot designs. She would go on to work for Native Arts in Woolwich, a business started by Chuck Hagen that has since closed.
Howe worked for Native Arts for about 20 years. Hagen, an ordained minister of the Native Church of Mexico, was an influential teacher for Howe. He introduced her to the powwow circuit and many of the native artisans she would go on to work with, she said.
“I kept educating myself, meeting more people, and building relationships,” Howe said. Howe started Abenaki Trading Co. while living in New Hampshire, but returned to Maine and continued to work for Native Arts. When Native Arts closed, Hagen encouraged Howe to open her own store.
Howe initially opened Abenaki Trading Co. in Hallowell, but closed the store to care for a friend undergoing chemotherapy “because that’s what you do for friends,” she said. When her friend passed away, Howe reopened Abenaki Trading Co. on her property in Dresden; it did not attract much attention or many customers, she said.
Howe was not looking for a new location when she was offered a rental agreement for the Route 1 location. “It was a risk,” Howe said of renting the space. “I almost didn’t do it.”
The support of friends and the memory of Howe’s deceased son pushed her to move Abenaki Trading Co. to Edgecomb, she said.
“It really was the spirit of my son,” Howe said. “I realized that I have the ability to make choices in my life and I should choose to live my passion. It took courage and I did it with my son in mind.”
Through the help of friends, Abenaki Trading Co. is able to open its doors six days a week, and Howe is able to maintain a separate, full-time job. Bill Pelkey, drum keeper for the Native American drum group Fish River Singers, is the face customers will see at the Abenaki Trading Co. four days a week.
Pelkey did not grow up in the native tradition; like many, his grandmother disavowed her Micmac heritage in favor of assimilation, he said. Pelkey spent 25 years tracking his native ancestry in Canada, genealogical research he encourages everyone to do.
“It’s good to know where you come from,” Pelkey said.
With his native roots uncovered, Pelkey devoted himself to learning the traditions of his Native American ancestors, he said – something he now helps teach to others through the drum. Educating others about Native American culture and traditions is part of the reason he offered to help at Abenaki Trading Co.’s new location, he said.
Howe describes the new location for Abenaki Trading Co. as an experimental “seasonal pop-up.” She hopes to keep the store open through December, and is unsure if Abenaki Trading Co. will remain at the location in future years.
In the two weeks since Abenaki Trading Co. opened its doors, customers have been flooding in, and have expressed deep appreciation for the store, Howe said. The Abenaki Trading Co. has been Howe’s labor of love, but is also something there is a real need for, she said.
“It’s still a risk,” Howe said, “but customers are thanking me for being here and bringing this into their life.”
For more information, find Abenaki Trading Co. on Facebook or call 656-2338.
